Stifel Nicolaus Downgrades Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) to Hold

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) was downgraded by analysts at Stifel Nicolaus from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued on Wednesday,Finviz reports. They currently have a $86.00 target price on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus’ price target would indicate a potential upside of 7.81% from the stock’s previous close.

FAST has been the topic of several other research reports. Stephens boosted their price objective on Fastenal from $56.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Fastenal from $67.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $74.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $88.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Fastenal from $72.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Fastenal currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $76.80.

Fastenal Price Performance

Shares of FAST opened at $79.77 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $78.81 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $70.98. The stock has a market cap of $45.70 billion, a PE ratio of 39.69, a P/E/G ratio of 4.79 and a beta of 1.00. Fastenal has a 1-year low of $61.33 and a 1-year high of $84.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 4.40 and a quick ratio of 2.29.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last posted its earnings results on Friday, October 11th. The company reported $0.52 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $1.91 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.90 billion. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.44% and a return on equity of 33.30%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.52 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Fastenal will post 2.03 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Fastenal

In other news, CAO Sheryl Ann Lisowski sold 13,567 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.19, for a total transaction of $1,033,669.73. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 5,096 shares in the company, valued at approximately $388,264.24. The trade was a 72.69 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 31,818 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.50, for a total transaction of $2,688,621.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 286,018 shares in the company, valued at $24,168,521. This trade represents a 10.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 208,289 shares of company stock valued at $16,123,438 over the last quarter. 0.41% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Fastenal

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Fastenal by 5.1% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 27,989,485 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,999,009,000 after purchasing an additional 1,346,863 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Fastenal by 3.2% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 19,878,045 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,419,690,000 after buying an additional 608,596 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Fastenal by 5.6% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 16,683,751 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,188,251,000 after buying an additional 880,372 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 3.4% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 5,909,206 shares of the company’s stock valued at $371,334,000 after acquiring an additional 193,734 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 5.0% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 4,718,200 shares of the company’s stock valued at $336,974,000 after acquiring an additional 226,126 shares during the period. 81.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Fastenal

Fastenal Company, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the wholesale distribution of industrial and construction supplies in the United States, Canada, Mexico, North America, and internationally. It offers fasteners, and related industrial and construction supplies under the Fastenal name. The company’s fastener products include threaded fasteners, bolts, nuts, screws, studs, and related washers that are used in manufactured products and construction projects, as well as in the maintenance and repair of machines.